API Quick start

[Bee]

Has anyone used api quick start?? I used it and woke up to my fish dead. I dosed it the way the instructions said but no luck I guess. It really bummed me out. I was so excited to start a new tank.

[Fish Folk]

Sorry to hear about your fish. If you don't mind a bunch of questions . . . Can you describe exactly how you went about using it? Were you setting up a new tank, wanting to help it go through the cycle immediately? Did you treat your Tap water to detoxify Chlorine / Chloramine before adding? Out of curiosity, are you familiar with the nitrogen cycle and how colonies of bacteria work?  

[lefty o]

it is a bacteria kickstarter, however it cant fix things like chlorine or other chemicals in the water. im guessing not just a new tank, but new to aquariums?

[Bee]

3 minutes ago, Fish Folk said:

Sorry to hear about your fish. If you don't mind a bunch of questions . . . Can you describe exactly how you went about using it? Were you setting up a new tank, wanting to help it go through the cycle immediately? Did you treat your Tap water to detoxify Chlorine / Chloramine before adding? Out of curiosity, are you familiar with the nitrogen cycle and how colonies of bacteria work?  

I used prime and the i had also put a sponge filter that I had in a different tank.but it was kept out of the water for like 10 minutes so idk if that was long enough for all the bacteria to die.  And like a day later I bought the quick start to add the fish 

[Biotope Biologist]

Sorry to here about that. I always have told people even way back when, when I worked at pet store chain in college. The bacterial kickstarter products are all complete gimmicks. They don't actually cycle the tank like it says they will. Although it is weird that your fish died in a night?

 

I still have a bunch of questions, but I think it would be easier if you walked us through step by step exactly what you did from buying the aquarium to buying the fish. Every gory detail would be helpful, then we can help you get on track to having an aquarium that all your friends envy ☺️

[Bee]

1 hour ago, Biotope Biologist said:

Sorry to here about that. I always have told people even way back when, when I worked at pet store chain in college. The bacterial kickstarter products are all complete gimmicks. They don't actually cycle the tank like it says they will. Although it is weird that your fish died in a night?

 

I still have a bunch of questions, but I think it would be easier if you walked us through step by step exactly what you did from buying the aquarium to buying the fish. Every gory detail would be helpful, then we can help you get on track to having an aquarium that all your friends envy ☺️

Technically I set a 40 breeder up  with a 50 aquaclear and 1 new sponge filter and 1 that I had in a different tank that has been set up close to 3 years. The next day I went and got a dojo loach. I acclimated him just by floating him for about 40min. I put him in bc of the seeded sponge i had put in. So it should be fish ready, right.... i noticed that he would just lay there and move a little. After a couple of minutes he started swimming alot more, but only near the surface of the tank. A little while later he was acting lethargic, like he would swim and then stop and would start sinking!!!! So I was soo worried and almost didn't know what to do. Then I scooped him up and put him in my patio pond and i hoped for the best. The next morning he was doing just fine.(also I don't have anyway to test the water bc I haven't set up a tank in forever and I haven't have a problem with any of my other tanks ever.......... ) Anyways I figured that for some odd reason the used sponge didn't do its job. So since this was the first new tank in a while I was really excited and impatient... So I thought of using turbostart bc "all the cool youtubers" use it, and from what I knew about it is that you can use it to skip the waiting of the  "cycle". I couldn't fine any in my lfs around me there were all sold out. Then I was looking around and i found api quick start. Same idea right.. watched couple of videos about it and all they would say that they don't have to wait and cycle. sooooo I bought a bottle and went ahead and bought 2 goldfish. ( That was the plan for that tank... 2 goldfish 1 dojo, simple, couple plants 😢". I got home put the dojo in a bag again and acclimated him with the goldies. I read the directions to quick start like 20 times. Put the amount in and then the fish. 1 of the goldies was skittish and just hit under a sponge filter. The other one was swimming just fine, and then the dojo was kind of just doing his thing. After like 15 minutes of just staring at them I figured I would let them rest and turn off the lights and left the room. About 5 minutes later I couldn't help it so I went to go check up on them again lol. At this point the bigger goldie was literally just laying on the floor and then... Of the tank... I kind of noticed that the dojo was acting a little weird again and that first goldfish I put in started swimming around. Never had goldfish so I didn't know if it was normal so I posted on some fb groups.... Never again. I knew what some ppl were going to say. A couple of people reacted to my post with angry faces and then the ones that they comment on the post were basically saying that I'm stupid and all this and that. A lot of people didn't want to try to help and results only ones I responded to but I don't really get a answer. Also bc I just didn't even feel like looking though the comments. I still have the hope of the quick start working so I just went to sleep and hope for the best and Hope that they were just tired or something I don't know lol. That's when I woke up and they were all almost grouped together dead on the bottom. Which I thought was kind of weird because don't fish float when they die most of the time at least the couple fish that have died on me usually float. But yeah that's basically what happened I buried them all together, right outside my house. And that was like 2 days ago. Today all I did was re-educate myself with the whole cycle and setting up a tank which I should have done from the beginning.... Now I don't even want to do goldfish anymore. I was so attached to the idea of having a goldfish tank and I followed all these goldfish channels and pages. All I did for like 2 weeks was watched goldfish videos and I just regret not looking up once how to set up a tank again 🥺

[lefty o]

need to do some water testing to see what is off. there seems to be something off with the tank.  you used a cycled sponge, and added a kickstarter. even without either, the fish wouldnt die overnight in an uncycled aquarium.

Edited April 3, 2021 by lefty o

[Biotope Biologist]

2 hours ago, lefty o said:

need to do some water testing to see what is off. there seems to be something off with the tank.  you used a cycled sponge, and added a kickstarter. even without either, the fish wouldnt die overnight in an uncycled aquarium.

Exactly my thinking. Ammonia burn is obvious though. Fish respirate heavily towards the surface of the tank their gills turn bright red, eventually they sort of lay on the bottom and die. Even then it still usually takes a couple days unless the ammonia is sitting at 4-7ppm. 

 

I still have alot of questions. If you could get a water test done that would help. Also where did you buy the goldfish and dojo loach? Did you notice if it was a fish delivery day or not? 

 

I don't think you're stupid or anything and this forum is alot friendlier than any facebook community. I think you were just unlucky.